The religion called Hinduism is one of the oldest and most prominent religions in today's world. It is a religion that has foundations from different groups with ideals in a sense of just living right and working for a better life. In this paper I will discuss what makes up the Hindu religion, its cultural and social influences on the societies that it affects, and give an understanding on the meaning of liberation from earthly existence.
There are different beliefs on what really makes up the religion of Hinduism. Some believe they are polytheistic and believe in many gods, where as some believe they are monotheistic (believing in only one god). For the most part they are henotheistic. They recognize a single deity or god but see other Gods or Goddesses as expressions of an absolute God. The basis for there belief system is the idea that they are born, they live out there life, eventually die, and are reborn into a new body. Their souls transfer with them into there new body. This process of life is called Samsara. The foundation of Samsara is karma, which determines what and how you will live in your next life. By living the way one is supposed to and showing devotion to this belief, a person can be reborn in a higher place or class. With that being said, bad deeds can have obviously the opposite effects causing one to be reborn in at a lower level. Along with this when something bad happens to an individual in their life, it is seen as the natural occurrence for the deeds one has done immorally. Therefore, they do not have a setup of step by step write and wrong principles but they use the consequences of bad behavior to do what is done by the Ten Commandments in Christianity. The only thing even similar is the four aims of Hinduism as they ...